Long time listener, first time caller.

Should switching from years of riding flat-bar bikes to one with drop bars leave you feeling like you've been in a train wreck after the 1st 45 miles, with aching neck muscles and a sore back?

I've been riding a Bianchi Strada w/ flat bar for thousands of enjoyable miles, and a Cannondale hybrid before that, but with a significant birthday coming up, my husband wanted to indulge my fantasy for a custom-made bike and this past Friday, I picked up a new Waterford at a shop a good 2 hours away. The LBS guy who took all the measurements did what seemed like an exacting final fitting, but I had a 'stretched out' feeling that he said I "would get used to" and insisted that "your position on the bike looks good...you have to lean onto the hoods differently than you handled your flat bar bike."

Okay, I thought, I'll try it.

There was a lot to like about the bike on Sunday's 45-mile ride, but afterward, the pain started at the base of my neck and in the lumbar region of my back that only today (Weds.) is beginning to resolve. I called the bike shop guy, who said, again, that I need to go on shorter rides to "get used to" a more stretched position, but this contradicts what others have said about bike fit: 'the bike should fit YOU, don't try to fit the bike.'

So I'm asking for your input: does switching to drop bars, indeed, 'take getting used to,' or should I insist on adjustments that are more comfortable NOW?

Bluetail